Sock
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Pro-tip, early Arbalest/Crossbow access
Sock replied to Odd Hermit's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
That would be so great. I grew up on Darklands, I SOMEHOW managed to beat it as a kid. I can't even figure out how to do that now and it's more than 20 years later. Darklands is what got me into RPGs. I used to watch my dad play it and when I wanted to play it, he said "You wouldn't like it, it involes a lot of reading." I then had to prove him wrong. -
It's probably a relic from before they put in magic. Most "drugs" are extremely weak.
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Out of context, this is a funny statement.
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Rarity of enchanted items?
Sock replied to Geldon's topic in Pillars of Eternity: General Discussion (NO SPOILERS)
Most crafting systems end up that way, unless they actually work on developing a real crafting and gathering system, and then it gets underutilized because that crap is boring. I -like- finding loot, and I also especially like finding rare loot with awesome stats. I like buying loot, too. The closest I've come to ever being pleasantly engaged in crafting was EQ2. Everything else, I've found crafting to be an indecypherable mess (D:OS), ridiculously OP and easy (DA:I), or useful but still optional (Witcher 2). Decide what role crafting will have in your game, and since this game doesn't have any talents associated with crafting, I don't hink crafting should be the primary source of itemization. Frankly, I don't like quality enchantments. That should be something you should get either through loot or buying, and then you enhance it with crafting. Not unlike ToEE requiring masterwork gear. -
Rarity of enchanted items?
Sock replied to Geldon's topic in Pillars of Eternity: General Discussion (NO SPOILERS)
Yes, you can, however I have always found that a lackluster function. My own creations could never meet the awesomeness of Flail of Ages or Short Bow of Gesen for example. I know what you mean. Crafting is a lazy option for developers to use to itemize their game. DA:I had HORRIBLE itemization, there were no special rings or amulets or even weapons, everything was weaker than what you could craft, and what you could craft just ended up being boring too, and ridiculously OP compared to loot. What you could craft was significantly better than anything you could find, and there was nothing special involved in crafting. You'd aquire all the best ingredients just by playing the game. It was extremely lazy implementation of itemization. I would much prefer it the other way around from what DA:I did. Crafting can make decent gear. Better gear can be found. But the best gear is aquired by going on a quest for ingredients to craft with, or a quest specifically to locate a "legendary" weapon. Personally, I fear PoE's crafting system. I'm really worried that it's going to be too easy to walk around in fully enchanted stuff. -
You're right. That just boosts it at the low end. 1H style, as a talent, is worthless. The base +10 accuracy is way better than the talent.
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Yeah, and since that's the most powerful 1H weapon that I saw, I imagine it's going to spawn in a set location. Possibly a shop, but likely in the hands of some enemy in the main plot line. Personally, I think it is in a Celestial Thunder type location. The name is too similar to be a coincidence. Either way, it will have a set location and metaknowledge will let you plan for it in future runs. Make a rogue and give them 1H style, turning grazes into hits. Give them dirty fighting, turning hits into crits. Give them vicious fighting, further turning hits into crits. Hearth Orlan, even further turning hits into crits. Take penetrating blows, and now look at what you have: Very high chance to crit, causing a stun, unlocking sneak attacks, coupled with penetration and best of pierce/crush (the two best damage types by far).
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The boots don't stack with the ring, so I'd be surprised.
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The difference between 1H and 2H is 10 Accuracy, that's a max of +10% crit chance. One-handed style (the talent) does not grant anything to crits. The status afflictions on crits are a chance, I believe - I'm not sure what the chance is, but I can check in the editor. If there are any 1H weapons that inflict those status effects, I'm going to summon one tonight and try it. Regardless of the horrible numbers, I don't think it's going to be as good as using a 2Her with the same enchantment (or two weapons). If ACC-DEF -5 or less, you are going to have 0% chance to crit, and 0% chance to cause those status effects, too. Going by the wiki, there's a hatchet and a warhammer that can both cause stun on crit. The hatchet includes a +20% bonus to attack speed, too, so it might be the most powerful one.
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Really, to me, I can see a Hearth Orlan with a 1h weapon that provides an on crit effect to be deadly. Of course, right now Hearth Orlans are bugged and crit waaaaaay more than they should, so testing it wouldn't be possible right now.
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Pike and extended reach.
Sock replied to Arden's topic in Pillars of Eternity: Stories (Spoiler Warning!)
Nope. -
I flat out disagree here. The numbers alone are enough to realize that it is signficantly outclassed by 2H and Dual Wield. On top of that - Single Weapon Style is a bad talent, as it's a random chance, it does not change the graze percent to 15 from 35. It's 20% of 35, which is 7% - but it's not equal to +7 Accuracy, because it only grants +50% damage increase, and does not reduce miss chance. Not sure what the effective accuracy equivalent would be but it would be like maybe +4 or so at ACC-DEF = 0. Two Handed Style gives a +10% damage boost all the time, providing you deal damage. Two Weapon style gives +20% recovery increase, which is pretty significant. Sword and Shield style (the talent) is good, but I don't think the weapon style (not the talent) is that great, and it's very inflexible compared to the other builds. There may be extreme cases where 1H style is okay - and those cases are probably in path of the damned, where the enemy defenses are higher, but on normal/easy/hard and in most scenarios it's an inferior style and talent compared to the others. You're also looking at it in a different way than I am. I don't look at 1h style as being a DPS style, like dual wield and 2h is. 1H style is one that significantly benefits any class that relies on crits, and in the scenario I described earlier... any 1h wielder using a weapon with an on crit: prone effect will, basically, have unlimited knock downs that trigger frequently. I've used the greatsword and pike in BB, and I've seen a 15 second prone effect from a crit with the greatsword. It would be reliable knock downs. You're trading DPS for CC, but it's entirely reliant on the weapons you have. If you don't have that kind of weapon, then yes, 1H isn't very useful. I also don't know what other on crit effects there might be, but thinking that there might be something with increased damage doesn't seem unrealistic.
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Frankly, I feel that 1H style is fine and well balanced, it's 1H weapons that aren't. There aren't any readily accessible powerful 1H weapons in the beta, much less any that really take advantage of it's strong point: high crit chance. Only the spear can recieve an on crit effect, and that's only if you chose the right option. It's not reliable without foreknowledge. You get a singificant boost to accuracy when wielding a single weapon, and the talent further boosts your damage by reducing your grazes. I made a 1 handed fighter with a mace that was actually pretty good. It wasn't the best build, but it was workable. Very reliable damage and hit rate. Actually had a 50% hit/crit ratio. 2h was superior, so was sword and board. However, 1h worked and I could see the value in it. All 1h weapons with an on crit effect will be incredible. Just with an on crit: prone effect, any 1h weapon enchanted with accuracy and high quality... you're looking at something that keeps everyone the wielder fights on their back the entire fight. I imagine 1h weapon builds will end up focused around their weapons in a non-traditional way. It's not about the damage, it's about the utility. Whatever one has the best on crit effect, or if any have an on hit effect, they will be outstanding.
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Noble is one of the better ones for dual wielding, IMO. Dagger, mace, and rapier. That's 3 damage types you'd have available.
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DD dual wield fighter vs DD dual wield rogue.
Sock replied to mrmonocle's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
There is no dodgy class. Deflection is the primary defense for avoiding damage, and it's highest with a shield. Without a shield, you'd be hard pressed to get it over 60. You might consider a monk for your class. Unarmed, they attack very quickly. But their abilities are fueled by taking damage. Rogues are extremely fragile and really should not be engaged in melee at all. -
Yup, I did kill him and loot his corpse. I think there was someting like soul vessel but now as I search through my stash (I looted all there) I cannot find it.. Weird. I got Nridek's brain though That would do it. I reported a bug where the stash eats the soulstone if you loot with the stash.
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Which class for me?
Sock replied to Erasculio's topic in Pillars of Eternity: Stories (Spoiler Warning!)
Chanter, in a weird way. They're like a Dovahkiin. They have chants that either boost themselves and their party, or do harm/debuff enemies near them, which build up into invocations. Invocations can do everything traditional magic can, but have a short range and cone targeting cursor, thus being most useful for someone in close-to-mid range. They have the most powerful summons, and can summon anything from the undead to dragons. They also have abilities to provide regeneration to their party, have the highest base deflection of any class, and have a decent accuracy rate as well. More suited for melee, but still very valuable at range pumping out party buffs and powerful summons. If you want something less hardy, Cipher works. They are psyonic warriors who gain power to channel their abilities by hitting their target. The range is large, but can only target creatures. Unlike chanters, they are able to use these abilities immediately and require no initial build up time. But they will run out of focus after a few castings when using higher level abilities, and will need to regen focus through hitting. They are capable of very high single target damage, but lack the chanter's ability to survive when attacked directly. They have excellent crowd control capabilities, and their abilities never risk friendly fire. When coupled with a rogue, they have the ability to provide the rogue with almost unlimited sneak attack opportunities, and can otherwise assist the party dramatically in many areas. They are a class with many powerful options, making every choice of ability worth thinking about. Very few classes can boast of this. Druids are another class you might consider a battle mage. They can shapeshift, but they can also cast several powerful spells, while also containing very limited healing capabilities. Considering their spell ranges and functions, they can work very well on the front-line, slinging spells and swinging swords. -
Just for theory-crafting... What if you made a DPS role 1h weapon fighter (or rogue), with a focus on crits? Weapon would be a battle axe, rapier, club, dagger, or spear. Boosting accuracy to as high as you can get it would result in more crits, so all weapons that boost accuracy are beneficial. But there are few ways to boost crit damage. Battle axes do that, and so does the Bloody Slaughter talent. The language used for talents is unclear and incosistant, but if I understand correctly, bloody slaughter should improve ALL crits, and not just crits that occur when opponent is at low endurance. Would also take penetrating blows with this, just to benefit from increased DR with a low damage weapon. Fighters have a lot of options, so you could go a +damage route with them while still be a durable fighter. I don't recall if rogues have a +crit damage class ability, but I think they mgiht? Regardless, can still benefit from sneak attack crits, and their blinds/cripples would last longer on a crit, assuming that your improved accuracy with a weapon also improves the accuracy of secondary effects.
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Party composition
Sock replied to Madscientist's topic in Pillars of Eternity: General Discussion (NO SPOILERS)
I managed to complete the beta with a party that was: Wizard, Chanter, Cipher, Druid, Paladin, Barbarian. I took Lay On Hands with the paladin, the self-heal for the barbarian, and everyone else was on their own. My paladin was either using LoH on herself or the barbarian, everyone else was charming and paralyzing, it was all about the CC game, and it really worked. Regardless of party compensation, you still need ways to counter enemy damage--healing is one way, but preventing the damage from occuring at all either through extreme DPS or heavy crowd control, works just as well. My barbarian was the one most often in trouble of dying, but he was a front line fighter in hide armor just cause. He still managed to top the damage charts while dual wielding. -
Will Spending Skill Points Be Interesting?
Sock replied to PrimeHydra's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
The use for stealth is entirely dependent on your party style and auto pause settings. My party is 2 defense, 2 hybrid, and 2 offensive. I'm covered for a lot of contingencies regardless of initial positioning, and occasionally run into those exciting moments when I am in trouble, and have to think creatively in the moment. I save frequently, so if I encounter something I can't beat the first time, I can reload it. My auto pause is set for 3 conditions. Enemy Sighted, Combat Begins, and Hidden Item Found. My initial position is exactly what it is when the fight begins, and I plan out my moves from there. I take up a defensive position if it calls for it, or charge and crush if it doesn't. I don't need stealth because the content isn't difficult enough to require it. -
Who do you expect to bring along on your first play through?
Sock replied to wanderon's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
I am still trying to decide between a melee ranger (weak) or a chanter for my first character. I really, really, like the image of the ranger, but they're just so weak that I don't know if I want my hero to be the weakest member in the party. And this class pick will partially define who I take with me the first go around. My go-to character for all RPGs is an Aragorn-esque character. Someone with a bastard sword, a round shield, chainmail and leather, and a bow. Bonus points for any game that also includes a torch that is actually effective, not just in combat but in environment. I don't think this game gets them in environment, but hey--the combat torch is awesome. I've used it plenty of times, even if it's weak. I secretly wish for a unique torch. Anyways, the whole point of my Aragorn-esque character is that I like the "leader" jack of all trades, the character who goes where he is needed depending on the situation at hand, but defaults to swinging a sword. I don't mind magic in the sense of enhancement, but I hate characters focused around magic. As far as NPCs to take along... I am decided on taking Eder--they've talked about him enough and indicated that he's important to the story so... fine. I'll take him, still wish he had been a "heavy rogue" instead of a fighter, but oh well on that. That decision rules out Paladin and Fighter for my hero's class. Aloth is coming with me as well. Since I don't do magic, I need someone who does. Hopefully he's enjoyable, since he'll probably get the most frequent reuse out of any of the characters. If I go with Ranger, then Sagani is out. If I go with Chanter, then Kana Rua is out. They're interchangable for my first run. Durance is coming with me. I've grown to really like my rifle and sword wielding priest of Magran, very effective character. Pallegina is coming with me as well, as I am really interested to see what her abilities are considering that not only is her god-like not available to the hero character, but neither is her paladin order. ______ So, my party will be Eder with a greatsword (and most defensive talents) and Pallegina with a pike (and offensive talents) serving as my meat shields. The hero with a sword and board, backing them up but mostly relying on primary class function (invocations or increased accuracy + pet flanking) to contribute to the party. Aloth in the back, flanked by Durance and Sagani/Kana Rua, all of them using ranged weapons. Durance with a rifle, Aloth with an implement, and then Sagani or Kana Rua with bows. I've ran through the beta with such a group, and it is perfect for my playstyle. -
Will Spending Skill Points Be Interesting?
Sock replied to PrimeHydra's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
Why would I need it? -
Will Spending Skill Points Be Interesting?
Sock replied to PrimeHydra's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
The beta doesn't reveal that. It may be that there will be situations where your companions will chime in, similar to how Minsc or Jan could get you into the Asylum. However, no characters have personality other than the main character in the beta. So, we don't have examples of where this is the case. -
Will Spending Skill Points Be Interesting?
Sock replied to PrimeHydra's topic in Backer Beta Discussion
Frankly, I plan to split my character's skills between Survival, Lore, and Athletics. I will have one character each dedicated to lore/mechanics/athletics. Everyone else will split survival and athletics. Even my focused characters will take some levels in athletics, and everyone will have a dusting of stealth as well. There is value in having multiple skills, especially with your main character. However, you will no doubt benefit highly from having two characters focusing in Lore (for scrolls) and Mechanics (for disarming traps/picking locks), and atheltics (a vital skill in a game like this).